Because the world needs more galactic conquerors!

THIS is why I love this game. Each one of these game mechanics is very simple, but taken together, it presents a big challenge to mount an invasion. And this is against a single small-ish foe, for which I have solid intelligence. I shudder to think what it's going to be like in conducting a war against human opponents, about whom I know little, with far more moving parts, and all of whom doubtless are handling THEIR empires far better than I!
- Ixnay

The PlayByMail.Net forum is not the busiest of forums, either in general or in terms of forums dedicated to play by mail games. But, it continues to slog along, persisting in being here for play by mail interested passers-by, and the true reward for that persistence comes in the form of true gems that get posted here, from time to time. One such gem of a posting is a recent forum entry by site user Ixnay, where he continues to elaborate on his progress and his schemes in Vern Holford's Intersteller Cluster Wars, or Cluster Wars, for short.

Having played against Ixnay, previously, in a game of Far Horizons, another space game of play by mail origin, I enjoy reading his ongoing series of postings on his new-found PBM love, Cluster Wars, even as I secretly wish for alien beings of every sort to smite his presence from the face of the galaxy.

Cluster Wars traces its roots to a pretty infamous PBM game of old, Empyrean Challenge, which was written in 1978 and launched in 1979. That was several years before I had even first learned about play by mail games. WOW! I'm pretty sure that makes Vern Holford older than me, so just knowing it is a nice little bonus to get my day going.

On a more serious note, though, Ixnay's series of postings in our forum about his Cluster Wars experience makes for appetizing reading. While I labor to get each issue of Suspense & Decision magazine put together, where's Ixnay? He's off playing all sorts of games, and just generally having a  good old time gaming his life away.

If you want to read Ixnay's most recent entry about his Cluster Wars escapades, you can do that by clicking here. If you feel up to the challenge, then by all means, you need to contact Vern Holford, himself, so that he can get you set up in this very same game with our esteemed galactic would-be conqueror, Ixnay.

Ixnay?! Isn't that pig Latin?? Does this mean that Ixnay rules a race of space-faring pigs that speak Latin?

Regardless of whether that is true or not, one thing seems to be unmistakable, and that is that Ixnay seems to be enjoying immersing himself in so many different play by mail games, or games that have deep PBM roots. I invite you to join him, by finding yourself a play by mail game that interests you, and giving it a try.

Ixnay is feeling all pumped up, right now, as he watches his space empire grow and evolve in Intersteller Cluster Wars. Such vanity! I'm still betting on those aliens to fry his puny little excuse for an empire like bacon. Little does he know that, even now, I am already scheming to get him involved in yet another PBM game.

He will protest loudly, I suspect, and  make some hogwash claim about being in too many games, already. But, this galactic boar will find it far too tempting to resist, once I begin to set the wheels in motion.

Of course, the chance does exist that he will balk, and run squealing at the first sight of yet another play by mail game intruding further into his life. But, to flee from the opportunity to kindle anew our conflict from the Far Horizons game that was cut short far too soon will, I think, prove to be far too great a temptation for this little space piggy to resist.

More on this other game at another time. For now, let's let Ixnay enjoy his scheming against those poor, unsuspecting aliens in Cluster Wars!